When the Amazon Dash Button launched, some thought it so impractical that it must be an April Fool’s joke. Contributor Davor Sutija urges marketers to consider it a bridge to the future of always-available commerce.

Brands and retailers are changing the way they engage with consumers who today have access to more choices than ever before. Increasing investments in “customer experience” enhancements, often incorporating technology, highlight the necessity of adapting old business practices to the speed and reality of omnichannel commerce.

As brands and retailers consider the role of the Internet of Things (IoT) in their operations and customer experience, they are quickly realizing the potential of simple IoT nodes or “touch points” to facilitate and encourage ubiquitous and immediate omnichannel commerce — the ability to quickly and easily initiate a targeted purchase just about anywhere and at any time.

As retail IoT buzz began to grow in 2015, e-commerce giant Amazon launched the Dash Button — a small battery-powered, WiFi-connected device that promised to streamline ordering of a specific product from a specific brand with the simple push of a button. While some initially saw it as an April Fool’s joke, the value became clear as initial curiosity led to satisfied users and significant sales for brands.

In practice, an Amazon user can purchase a $5 Dash Button featuring the Tide logo, for example, pair it to their home network, configure it to reorder Tide laundry detergent via Amazon and place the button near their clothes washer. When the user needs more Tide, they push the button and Amazon completes the order, shipping Tide to the user without any additional hassle. Many users were thrilled with the consumer experience, as evidenced by the reported acceleration of Dash-initiated transactions to four orders per minute by early 2017 — quadruple the previous year’s rate, according to TechCrunch.